


Unexpected

by verucasalt123



Series: 2013 wishlist_fic fills [3]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Christmas, Cursed Dean, Cursed Sam, Fluff and Angst, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-02
Updated: 2013-12-02
Packaged: 2018-01-03 06:05:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1066962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/verucasalt123/pseuds/verucasalt123
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>prompt: it's Christmas, and Sam and Dean have been cursed to be de-aged until New years. Someone, Keven preferred, but Garth, Cas or Jodi (in that order of preference) decides to give them the Christmas they never had, complete with Santa Claus.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unexpected

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blackrabbit42](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=blackrabbit42).



Kevin was starting to get worried. Dean and Sam were due back yesterday from a hunt with Garth, and he hadn’t heard a word. He didn’t have Garth’s number but Dean and Sam weren’t answering their phones. 

Just as he was about to try calling again, he heard the door open and looked up to see Garth standing there with two small children wrapped in blankets. He stood and stared as Garth made his way down the steps, dragging the kids along with him. Kevin was completely lost. “Dude, what the f- what is going on? Where are Sam and Dean? Why did you bring half-naked children in here? It’s freezing for – for pete’s sake!”

Garth flopped into a chair and let out a deep breath. “Witches, man. They were much worse than we thought. We managed to get them all but not before the last one threw a nasty curse at us. I was out of the line of fire – just barely, but…”

Kevin’s heart jumped into his throat. “Where are the guys, Garth? What happened?”

“Look at these kids, man. Seriously, look at them.”

So Kevin did, closer than he had before. One was very small with chubby cheeks, the other was a bit older and looked more angry than someone so young had any business looking. There was something else in those eyes, though, something extremely familiar. It hit him like a punch – Garth hadn’t come back without Dean and Sam. “Holy Christ, that’s a powerful spell. Do they know anything?” he whispered, the kids mostly paying attention to each other. 

“Sam hasn’t said a word and Dean is just pissed. Asking for his _dad_. What the hell am I supposed to say? I just said I was taking them someplace safe, a place that belonged to his dad’s family and that they’d be all right here. He thinks I’m full of shit, though, I can tell.”

For all his silly antics, the truth was that Garth had no clue how to deal with kids. Kevin had no idea whether or not he’d do any better, but he had to try. They must be freaking terrified. 

Squatting down so he was at their level, Kevin said, “Dean, I know your dad wouldn’t ever tell you to trust a stranger, but I promise you, you’re safe here. Wait, okay? I’ll be right back.” Kevin dashed into Dean’s room and back as quickly as he could, then showed him the two pictures Dean kept on his dresser of his family. “See? This place really does belong to your family. And we’re friends. My name is Kevin. I know this is scary, but I swear, we’re going to look after you and your brother.”

Dean seemed to look a little less suspicious after he saw the pictures, and finally spoke. “Do you have clothes for us? Sammy’s cold. This guy”, he gestured toward Garth, “only had grownup clothes.” Whispering, he added, “We don’t even have any underwear.”

“I’m gonna fix that. Garth is going to make you two something to eat while I go out and pick up a few things for you and your little brother. I’ll be back as quickly as I can.”

Dean leaned down and whispered to Sam, then nodded. Kevin figured that was all the agreement he was going to get. Telling Garth to make a pot of mac and cheese, he grabbed his keys, dreading hitting the stores on Christmas Eve. 

While he was out fighting the crowds, though, it occurred to him that Christmas probably wasn’t any kind of big celebration for these kids while they were growing up. It was an odd feeling, only knowing Sam as this giant towering man and seeing him as a scared, silent child barely older than a toddler. Hell, he was at the store anyway, so why not? Tossing clothes into his basket, he picked up a fake tree in a box, some lights, wrapping paper, and a few toys he figured were age-appropriate. Well, for regular kids their age, anyway. Who knew if the Winchesters even _had_ toys by this point in their lives? Kevin hadn’t ever given much thought to the kind of childhood Sam and Dean had, but it only made sense that it was completely fucked up, which made him kind of sad. He didn’t have time to dwell on it, though – he didn’t have time to sit and think about feelings these days anyway. 

When he got back to the bunker, he left the toys and tree in the car and just brought in the clothes. Pajamas, sweats, socks, underwear – just the basics. The kids were fed once he got there and looked exhausted. No way he was putting them to sleep in Dean’s room, with its fancy weapons display. “Got you guys some pajamas and clothes for tomorrow. You can sleep in your own rooms, or stay together.”

Dean just looked at him like he’d lost his mind, so Kevin assumed that meant they’d be sharing a room. He led them to Sam’s bedroom, and gave them the clothes he’d bought. “I’ll come back to check on you two in a few minutes, all right?” He got another nod from Dean in response, and still nothing from Sam. When he returned, they were both in their pajamas, which more or less fit them both, and Dean was whispering to Sam again. 

“Okay, so, you already saw where the bathroom is, I’m gonna leave the light on in the hall-”

Dean interrupted him then. “I’m gonna be eight next month, sir, I don’t need a night light.”

“Of course you don’t, I just thought in case you needed to get up and use the bathroom in the night, it would make it easier to find.”

Dean seemed to be satisfied with this response, as Kevin was still reeling from being called ‘sir’ by Dean Winchester, even in the form of a small child. 

“All right, then. If you have everything you need, get some sleep. We’ll be here in the morning.”

As he was leaving the room, he heard Sam say thank you with what he refused to acknowledge was an adorable lisp. 

Garth was ready for him when Kevin returned to the main room. “Jesus fuck, man, this is bad. If I’d been hit, too, I have no idea how we could have gotten back here. You got any ideas on what this curse is?”

“My guess is that it’s one that will wear off, but let me do some research. In the meantime, we’ve got a little work to do.” Without another word, he went outside and returned with the tree in its box. “Let’s put this shit together.”

Garth stared. “A Christmas tree? Seriously?”

“Look, we have no clue whether or not they’re going to remember any of this. But it is Christmas, and they’re kids, for now. It’s the right thing to do.”

Garth knew there was no room for argument, Kevin’s expression was determined. And he got it, in a way – neither of them knew much about how the Winchesters had grown up except that they’d been trained to hunt since they were kids and lived out of their car and various motel rooms. If they were stuck as children for now, they might as well have Christmas. It was something Garth and Kevin had taken for granted as kids. 

While Garth put the tree together and wrapped the gifts, Kevin hit the books. “This won’t last more than a few days, maybe a week. We can handle it for that long if we can keep Dean calm. He already knows his dad has to be gone sometimes, and for all we know leaving him alone with Sam might be standard protocol.” He wanted to punch John Winchester in the face; he knew their family wasn’t exactly traditional and a lot of tough decisions had to be made, but leaving kids so young to fend for themselves was something he’d never understand. 

When the Winchesters woke up the next morning, they both stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of the lighted tree and the wrapped gifts. Dean still looked suspicious, but was clearly trying to hide a grin, while Sam just yelled, “SANTA! Dean, it’s-”, he cut himself off, looking down and then back at the adults in the room. “Sorry, I – this is probly yours.”

“Sam”, Garth said, “Santa knew where you were. None of this is for us, it’s for you and your brother. We’re grownups, Santa only leaves presents for kids. Now, you want some breakfast or you wanna open presents?”

He looked up at Dean hopefully, who just said, “Go on, Sammy. It’s all right.” He clearly wasn’t buying this Santa Claus bullshit for a second, but he wasn’t going to take it away from his little brother. 

Kevin chimed in then, telling Dean that there were things for him, too, and Dean tried _very_ hard to look casual as he joined Sam sitting under the tree. 

Garth made French toast and Kevin kept his distance as he watched Dean crash his matchbox cars while Sam colored in a picture of Spiderman. Neither of the adults were going to get emotional. They didn’t get emotional. 

Well, maybe they did, a little, sometimes. 

Somehow they made it through the next few days, until Dean snuck out of Sam’s bed, got clothes from his own room and sat across from Kevin with a questioning look. 

“How much do you remember?” Kevin asked, almost afraid to know the answer.

“All of it”, Dean said. “All of it. And…just, you know. Thanks. You didn’t have to-”

Kevin just shrugged and said, “We’re glad to have you back. Please don’t ever call me ‘sir’ again” with a sly grin. 

“No worries there, kiddo. Where’s Garth?”

“Took off this morning. I think he was a little more freaked out by this whole thing.”

“He did good. _You_ did good. Now, can we please just pretend none of this ever happened?”

“Sure thing, Dean. But you can keep your matchbox cars, in case you ever get bored.”

Then Dean reached over and put Kevin in a headlock, and Kevin bitched, and Sam walked out complaining that he was starving, and all was right with the world.


End file.
